It is reported in the literature that compounds of the general formula (I) are useful in the control of phytopathogenic fungi on agronomic crops. The South African Patent Application No. 765,920 published Sept. 28, 1976 assigned to Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd. discloses this general class of compounds and their use in controlling fungi. This specification discloses two procedures for the preparation of these compounds. In both procedures the imidazole or triazole ring is added onto the aryl alkyl ketone moiety in the initial steps of the reaction sequence. Both imidazole and triazole are expensive reagents and the addition of these compounds in the initial steps of a reaction sequence adds considerably to the overall cost of the final product since the loss in yield of each additional step in the reaction sequence adds significantly to the cost of the final product. Moreover, the dibromoketone of formula (III), can be prepared in simple reaction sequences in high yields starting with inexpensive raw materials.